Fall bar adjustment in cotton&#39;s patent knitting machines



Dec. 22, 1959 e. E. sTbKEs ,9

FALL BAR ADJUSTMENT IN COTTON'S PATENT KNITTING MACHINES Filed Dec. 20, 195'? 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Inventor By fluoeblfwk Attorney Dec. 22, 1959 G. E. STOKES FALL BAR ADJUSTMENT IN COTTON'S PATENT KNITTING MACHINES Filed Dec. 20, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG.3.

United Application December 20, 1957, Serial No. 704,135

1 C e msp Q y ppli t o e tB in January 10, 1 957 3 Claims (Cl. 66 -110) invention concerns the fall bar adjustment in Cotton s patent and other straight bar knitting machines. These machines have, in each needle division, a sinker head'which comprises a tricked sinker bed (in which the jack sinkers arid dividing sinkers are slidable towards and away fromthe needle line) covered by a sinker cap. On" this sinker cap there is mounted a member which is commonly termed'a fall bar but which is also sometimes referred to as a verge plate. 'Thisrnember has a rear operative face which serves as a stopto limit advance of the jack sinkers towards the needle line. The attitude of thisfall bar requires to be adjusted when the machine is set up, so'as to ensurethat all the jack'sinkers measure loops of the requisite, and'uniform, size. That is to say, two kinds of adjustment are simultaneously required: (a) bodiiy'adjustment towards and away from the needle lines'othat' the spacing between the operative face and the'needle line is such'as to give the required maximum advance'of the jacksinkers and (b) adjustment forparalleli'sm 'so that the operative face is parallel to the needle line and all. the jack sinkers have the same advance. Such adjustmentsmay also require to becar'ried out during tates Patent "0 theworking life of the machine. In one known construction't he fallbar is attached to the sinker cap by three screw-a'ndfslotarrangements, there being one such arrangementn'ear each end of the fall bar and oneat the cent'reiof itslength. In "adjusting for parallelism the two end screws'areloosened and the fall bar moved slight- 1y 'or skewed about the centre screw. 'In adjusting for spacing, all three'sc'rews are loosened and the bar moved asa whole. In other known constructions, a greater number er screw-and-slot arrangements are employed. It'will be appreciated that with these known construe tions'the accurate positioning of the fall bar is a tedious operation an'dthjere isconsiderable scope for error in making an adjustment of the fall bar. i The present invention hasarnong its objects a fall bar assembly'permittingfine and accurate adjustment of the fall bar' towards and away from the needles without endwise movement, and also a fall bar assembly permitting both of the two kinds of adjustment hereinbefore specified to be effected readily and with great accuracy.

The present invention provides a Cottons patent or other straight bar knitting machine having the fall bar adjustable towards and 'away from the needlesby two iiidependently c perable eccentric devices or cam devices 1th H are spaced apart lengthwise of the fall bar and areconstru'cted" and ana'n'g'ea'te meve the fall bar only in this specified direction. Thus adjustment for parallelism may readily, be carried out by rotating one or both devices and adjustment for spacing may be carried out by rotating both devices. Preferably in addition to these devices there is at least one device guiding the'fall bar in the specified direction. This guide device is advantageously located midway between two adjusting devices and is arranged to permit an adjustment for parallelism by a skewing movement of the fall bar about an axis.

According to a subsidiary feature of the invention each 2,917,913 Patented Dec. 22, 1959 eccentric device comprises two abutments carried by the fall (or by a stationary part of the machine) and spaced apart in the; specified direction, and an eccentric rotatably adjustable between the two abutments about an axis that is fixed in relationto the stationary part (or the fall bar as the case may be) which eccentric is engaged by the two abutments at locations on a line extending in the specified direction.

This invention also includes a sinker head or sinker cap equipped with a fall bar and with the adjusting devices.

In order-that the invention may be better understood, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view through relevant-parts of aQottons patent machine incorporating this invention;

Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view, on a larger scale, through the sinker head and also shows the jack sinkers;

Figure 3 is a plan view of the fall-bar and adjusting means (part of the latter being shown in section);

Figure 4 is an'elevation of the fall-bar and adjusting mechanism;

Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view,-on a still larger scale, through one of the eccentric devices;

Figure 6 is a like view through a clamping device dis,- posed midway between the eccentric devices;

Figure 7 illustrates a modification.

In ,Fig. 1 there is shown only sufficient of a conventional Cottons patent (or straight bar) knitting machine to permit it to be identified and to disclose the relationship of the fall-bar to cooperating parts. The figure therefore-shows the line of bearded needles 10, the needle bar 11, knockover bits 12, sinker head 13, jack sinkers 14, jacks 15, slur-cock 16, catch bar 17, threaded carriers 18, fashioning or narrowing mechanism 19, and main cam shaft 20. As clearly shown in Fig. 2 the sinker head 13 comprises a tricked sinker bed 21 covered by a sinker cap 22 the bed-and cap being secured together at their two ends byknown means 23.

In a preferred construction according to this invention the fall bar 24 has, midway in its length, a clamping and guiding device 25 comprising a slot 26 which is aligned with the sinkers 14, ie the centre line of the slot is at right angles to the needle'line and extends in the direction hereinb efore specified. Through this slot 26 a clamping pin 27 (provided at itsupper end, above'the fall bar, with a clamping'nut 28) extends into the sinker cap '22. This pin-and-slot arrangement not only pro,- vides a guide for movement of the fall bar 24 towards and away from the needle line but the pin 27 provides a pivot about which the, fall bar may move or skew in adjustment for parallelism. It will of course beapprecia'ted that instead of a clamping pin and a nut, a clamping screw or bolt may be used.

-Desirably,uthe. slot 26 is formed in a bush 29 inserted in the fall bar and retained by three, or any other suitable number of screws '30 extending into the fall bar through a flange 31, on the bush, overlying the top face of the fall bar. Desirably also, the pivot pin 27 is constituted by a stud .haying'a plaincylindrical body 31 fitting in the slotted -bush ;-29 A washer 32 is interposed betweennut 2.8;.and. flange '31.

Near:- each; end; the fallbar Zdis equipped with an eccentric adjusting device 33a or 33b, the axis of the clamping pin 27 being midway between thesetwo devices. The two eccentric clamping devices 33a, 33b are identical in construction. Therefore it is only necessary to describe the device 33a, like parts in the two devices having the same reference number but being distinguished by the letter a or b.

An inserted bush 34a of hardened steel is inserted in the fall bar and is held in position by means of three or any other suitable number of screws 35a extending into the fall bar through a flange 36a provided at the top end of the bush and overlying the top face of the fall bar. The bore 37a of this bush is provided with two opposed and parallel fiat faces 38a extending chordally. The bush 34a is rotationally adjusted and is then secured by the screws 35a so that these flat faces 38a extend lengthwise of the ball bar, parallel to the needle line, and corresponding flat faces in the two bushes 34a and 34b lie in the same planes. These flat faces (which constitute the abutments before mentioned) may be formed by an appropriate machining operation in the interior of the bush or by fitting inserts into the interior of the bush.

The bush 34a accommodates an eccentric 39a which is rotatable about a centre pin 40a extending upwards through the bush from the sinker cap 22. The eccentric 39a is of such dimensions that it fits between the two flat faces 38a and engages the latter at locations on a line extending normal to the needle line. It will be understood that, because of the last-mentioned feature, rotation of the eccentric 39a moves the fall bar only in the specified direction. This is advantageous because it ensures that, notwithstanding any adjustment, each jack sinker always strikes the fall bar at the same point.

The eccentric device may be provided with indexing means. For this purpose the eccentric 39a has at its upper enda dial-like flange 41a which co-operates with the flange 36a on the bush, a suitable scale being provided on one and an index mark or Vernier on the other so that the rotational position of the eccentric may be determined with accuracy. The scale may be calibrated in 0.005" effective forward movement of the fall bar.

Between the flange 36a on the bush and the dial-like sflange 41a on the eccentric there may be provided yielding spring-loaded means for locating the eccentric in any selected adjusted position in accordance with the above mentioned calibration. For example as shown in Fig. 7 this means may consist of a spring washer 42a fixed to one of the two parts and having crimped projections 43a engaging in grooves 44a on the other part. As the eccentric is rotated the projections snap over from groove to groove.

The eccentric is provided with an hexagonal head 4512 or other means whereby it may be rotated and the centre pin 40a is provided at its top end with a locknut or hexagon 46a by which the eccentric may be clamped in its adjusted position. It will be understood that the spring-loaded means above described provides for the eccentric to be retained, against accidental displacement, in any rotational position to which it may be turned, pending the more permanent and secure fixing of the eccentric in that position by the lock-nut or hexagon 46a.

It will be appreciated that after the clamping nut 28 on the central clam-ping pin 27 has been loosened the fall bar 24 may be adjusted for parallelism by rotation of one eccentric 39a or 39b or by rotation of both eccentrics to differing extents or in opposite senses, in which adjustment the fall bar skews about the clamping pin; the fall bar may be adjusted for spacing by rotation of both eccentrics, in which adjustment the fall bar is guided by the central guide slot 26 and clamping pin 27. Thus accurate adjustment of the fall bar in setting up the machine, and during its working lift, is relatively easy.

The operative edge of the fall bar 24 may be constituted by an inserted strip or bar 45, for example of nylon.

It will be appreciated that the guide slot 24 may be formed in the sinker cap 22 and the pivot pin 27 fixed in the fall bar 24. It will also be appreciated that the eccentrics 39a, 39b may be pivoted on pins 40a and 40b fixed in the fall bar and the abutments 38a, 3812 provided in the sinker cap.

I claim:

1. In a straight bar knitting machine having a line of needles, and a tricked sinker bed for sinkers that are slidable towards and away from the needle line, the combination of a fall bar for limiting advance of sinkers towards the needle line, a fixed base for receiving the fall bar, adjustment means for adjusting the fall bar on the base towards and away from the needle line and for adjusting the fall bar for parallelism with the needle line, guide means for guiding the fall bar towards and away from the needles and for preventing the movement lengthwise of the needle line, and releasable screw means for fixing the fall bar in adjusted position on the base, which adjustment means comprises, at each of two locations spaced apart lengthwise of the needle line, an eccentric, means for mounting it on the base for rotational adjustment and for fixing it in rotationally adjusted position, and two cooperating abutments, on the fall bar, spaced apart in the direction of sinker movement and closely receiving the eccentric between them, whereby rotation of the eccentrics between their abutments adjusts the fall bar towards and away from the needles.

2. For a straight bar knitting machine having a line of needles, and a sinker bed for receiving sinkers individually mo'vable towards and away from the needle line, the combination of two main components, viz. a sinker cap for fitting over the sinkers to retain them in the sinker bed, and a fall bar for limiting the advance of the sinkers towards the needle line, adjustment means for adjusting the fall bar relatively to the sinker cap towards and away from the needle line and for parallelism with the needle line, guide means for guiding the, fall bar relatively to the sinker cap towards and away from the needle line and for permitting said adjustment for parallelism while preventing movement of the fall bar relatively to the sinker cap lengthwise of the needle line, and releasable means for fixing the fallbar in adjusted position on the sinker cap, which adjustment means comprises, at each of two locations spaced apart lengthwise of the needle line, an eccentric, means for mounting it on one of the main components for rotational adjustment and for fixing it in rotationally adjusted position, and two cooperating abutments, on the other main component, spaced apart in the direction of sinker movement and closely receiving the eccentric between them.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1, having associated with each eccentric means, including a scale for indicating its rotationally adjusted position and yielding spring loaded means for locating the eccentricin adjusted position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Y 2,137,604 Deitenbach Nov. 22, 1938 2,150,730 Schluessler Mar. 14, 1939 2,227,403 Weisbecker Dec. 31, 1940 2,241,062

7 Good May 6, 1941 

